Movies: The New Threat To Society

From watches and cars to drinks and phones, endless arrays of products are strategically placed in everything we see to gently nudge us in the direction of a purchase. This method is preferred over direct advertising because commercials seem too pushy. On the other hand, if Bond, a slick Hollywood icon, wears an Omega, it's a good reason for every guy to wear one, right?

Enough Bond-bashing. Let us focus on the stars of these mega-movies. At the Oscars, people truly care less about who wins than about what they wear. The oh-so-annoying Tyra Banks asked each and every female she could get her hands what designer they were wearing. The next day, at offices around the world, people hardly spoke of who won what. Bring up the subject of who wore what, and the chatter erupts.

The day after the awards is the most hectic day of the year for small designers. They are all in a scurry, rushing to copy the fabulous dresses worn the night before. They take a $25,000 dress, copy it and sell it for $300. The average consumer wouldn't go out of their way to spit on the majority of these dresses, let alone pay $300 for them, but just because the celebrity of the week wore one at the Oscar ceremony, everyone must have one.

There is a direct relationship between the styles we see in movies and the fashions of the following year. Movies like The Matrix , starring Keanu Reeves, dictate what real-life fashions should be rather than depicting real-life fashions. The movie featured ultra-sharp tailored suits and coats, with enough latex to make Trojan jealous.

The Matrix inspired several runway looks that have brought leather pants back to mainstream fashion. For a designer, the best way to get their designs widely accepted is to get them in a hit movie. The rest will take care of itself.

When will we be able to dictate what we like and what should be in style at the moment? The whole concept of new fashion is distorted. Why should we look to designers for the newest style? In a perfect world, they would look at us, and model their designs around our demands. Have we come to the point where we cannot judge what is fashionable and what is not, for ourselves? Alas, this is the way the system works. While I do not necessarily agree with it, I have come to accept it, realizing that it will not change. Well, not overnight anyway.